Makkasan station (Thai: สถานีมักกะสัน) is a rapid transit station on the Airport Rail Link. The station was opened in August 2010. It was the terminal station for the Airport Rail Link Express Line, which was suspended in September 2014 due to a shortage of rolling stock. Currently, the station is a stop on the Airport Rail Link City Line. Until September 2014, Thai Airways'City Air Terminal check-in facilities were located inside the station.
Makkasan is the largest station on the Airport Rail Link connecting Suvarnabhumi Airport with downtown Bangkok. It was envisioned as a city air terminal where passengers could check into outgoing flights and connect to the public transportation network in Bangkok. In reality, the terminal was rarely used[1] due to its inconvenient location and lack of connections to other public transportation. Access to the terminal was via one crowded road and when leaving the terminal, traffic must go in a direction that makes getting to the popular Sukhumvit and Silom areas time-consuming and inconvenient.[2]
State Railway of Thailand
Underneath the railway station at ground level and located at the level crossing is Asok railway halt, operated by the State Railway of Thailand (SRT). It serves intercity services on the Eastern Line.
The ARL station shares the same name as Makkasan railway station of the SRT Eastern Line, but is at a different location to the west of the ARL station. The SRT station shares the same name with the Asok BTS station on the Sukhumvit Line, but it is at a different location to the south of the station, and takes 1 stop on the Blue Line.